The Gugant surname appeared in Gaelic as Mag Uiginn, which is probably derived from a Norse forename. The name is usually pronounced as "McGwiggen" in it's homeland County Tyrone (especially around Omagh).

Gugant Early Origins

The surname Gugant was first found in County Tyrone (Irish:Tír Eoghain), the ancient territory of the O'Neills, now in the Province of Ulster, central Northern Ireland, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Gugant Spelling Variations

Gugant Spelling Variations

Names from the Middle Ages demonstrate many spelling variations. This is because the recording scribe or church official often decided as to how a person's name was spelt and in what language. Research into the name Gugant revealed many variations, including MacGuigan, MacGoogan, MacGougan,MacGookin, MacGuckin, MacGugan, MacQuiggan, MacWiggin, MacGucken, MacGuckian, MacGuiggan, MacGuighan and many more.

Gugant Early History

Gugant Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gugant research. Another 141 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1800, 1616 and 1659 are included under the topic Early Gugant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gugant Early Notables (pre 1700)

Gugant Early Notables (pre 1700)

Another 20 words (1 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gugant Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

The Great Migration

During the 19th century thousands of impoverished Irish families made the long journey to British North America and the United States. These people were leaving a land that had become beset with poverty, lack of opportunity, and hunger. In North America, they hoped to find land, work, and political and religious freedoms. Although the majority of the immigrants that survived the long sea passage did make these discoveries, it was not without much perseverance and hard work: by the mid-19th century land suitable for agriculture was short supply, especially in British North America, in the east; the work available was generally low paying and physically taxing construction or factory work; and the English stereotypes concerning the Irish, although less frequent and vehement, were, nevertheless, present in the land of freedom, liberty, and equality for all men. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Research into passenger and immigration lists has brought forth evidence of the early members of the Gugant family in North America: Andrew, Charles, Francis, Patrick, MacGucken, who all settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between 1840 and 1870; Henry MacGuckian settled in Philadelphia in 1843.

Motto

Motto

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

The Gugant Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Gugant Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.